


In the larger than expected woods

by Aknolan



Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: AU, Angsty backstories probably, F/F, Gonna take some time to get to the fluff though, Mostly Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-25
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-10-16 05:34:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17543672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aknolan/pseuds/Aknolan
Summary: A witch!AU promt from sapphic september turned into an idea for a multi-chapter story where those who are running away into the forest disappear, and those who go to find them always get back without any trouble.





	1. The forest

**Author's Note:**

> The first chapter is basically just what I wrote for the prompt but with a few changes to details, nothing big, just things that might seem a bit odd otherwise.

You'd ran away foolishly, right into the woods. Of course you knew people would be following you, so you thought it would be smart to go off the trail. Of course, it really really wasn't, and by the time you turned around, all you could see was trees. Once people went off the trail, they didn't return. No matter how many searching parties went into the woods, nobody ever got found again. This had always seemed strange to you because the search parties always got back safely, so why did nobody else return? It was a great mystery that you had always wanted to solve, but you probably should have used a different method. You were wandering around the forest, getting more and more lost as the sky got darker and darker. Your new theory was that the search parties got back because they actually paid attention to where they were going, but as you reached the top of one of the taller trees and managed to look out over the forest, your theory was proven wrong.

The forest was supposed to be small, people had gotten scared and so the forest became a great place for woodcutters. It was a real shame, but at least they seemed unable to get past a certain point, when they tried anyways the woodcutters all came back babbling about monsters. Either way, what you were supposed to be seeing was a small forest with edges visible on all sides. What you weren't supposed to be seeing, was trees as far as the eye could see, which wasn't even that far in some directions because there were giant trees in the way. Which also weren't supposed to be there. And what was even more mysterious, was a big clearing with a lake and a huge mansion. None of the search parties or woodcutters had ever mentioned anything like this, you would know, you've done your research. It was a mystery to solve, and if you'd have to bet on a place to start, it would be the mansion.

You weren't sure how to approach the mansion safely, so step one would be observing from a distance, hidden. You watched intently but you couldn't see through the windows from this distance and there were no hiding spots any closer.

"So, what are you running away from?"  
You spun around, immediately throwing a hit in the direction the voice had come from. You missed, even though you hadn't seen anyone move. There was just a girl looking at you with raised eyebrows, a bit to the right of where you'd tried to hit her.  
"Whoa, calm down. You must be running away from some really dangerous people if you're gonna react like that. Don't worry though, you're safe now. They won't find you here."  
"Who are you and what's going on here!"  
"Lena, local witch and protector of all who come here running away from something. Including myself, considering I ran away from my aunt."  
You looked at the teenager standing on front of her, she looked so confident and calm and it made you wonder what her aunt could have done to make her run away. You decided not to pry. Instead you asked about the role Lena held. "Aren't protectors supposed to be adults?"  
Lena shrugged. "Usually, sure, but this isn't a very usual place is it? Anyways, do you want to meet everyone else or are you just going to keep standing here until it gets dark?"  
A pause. Lena suddenly disappeared and you yelped, spinning around, as you felt a hand on your shoulder. And there was Lena, who started speaking again.  
"I know this isn't the most comforting thing, but I am a witch and a protector, if I wanted to hurt you, you wouldn't stand a chance. So," Lena turned around and started walking away. "are you coming?"  
Not feeling like you had much of a choice, but also buzzing with excitement that you got to find out more about this mysterious place (with a new mystery in Lena), you followed.


	2. The mansion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Webby asks questions, Lena is annoyed.

As you got closer to the mansion you could see that many of the windows had lights behind them, though all windows were closed, as was the only visible entrance. You made a mental note to check for locks and less obvious ways to leave the house. When you got to the entrance Lena turned around.  
"Welcome to the mansion, we're a bit late for dinner but there should be some left, might even be a few people still in the dinner hall, so we can go get something to eat and then we'll go find you a room, alright?" She doesn't wait for an answer before turning to open the door.  
Inside the place is, simply put, a mess. There are piles of books everywhere, with layers of dust on top, the stairs have one small path people can walk on and one of the hallways seems to have collapsed, judging from the entrance being mostly blocked by wood and stone. The lights are on, but when you look up you can see they're not exactly normal.  
"What's with the floating orbs?"  
"Magic."  
"How does it work? Does it have some kind of battery? Do you have to constantly focus on making the lights be there? Does it constantly drain you or is it like a one time thing that lasts for a certain ammount of time? Ooh! Or does it draw from the environment! Is that why that hallway collapsed? If it weakens structures it seems like a bad idea though..."  
"It's just magic. Come on, dinner's this way."  
Lena pointed to one of the hallways upstairs and you followed her, looking at the roof, which seemed to be doing fine. Then again, you weren't an expert on any of this. You managed to stay silent for about five whole seconds, which you were proud of, it was basically a record time for having seen something interesting.

"Alright but magic should have consistent rules right? How else will you know what you're doing! You need to be able to predict the results in order to actually _use_ magic, if you didn't know what the lights did you wouldn't be able to use them, at least I'm assuming they're yours. If you don't know how they work that would mean someone else made them, did someone else make them?" While talking you hadn't noticed Lena stopping, not until you bumped into her anyways.  
"If I tell you how the lamps work, will you get through the rest of this day without asking any more questions?"  
"Does that mean a detailed explanation?"  
Lena sighed. "Yeah yeah sure, whatever. Just... I'll give you the short answer now and after dinner you can ask all about the lamps, okay?"  
You couldn't help grinning and bouncing up and down. "Thank you!"  
You thought you saw her smiling for just a moment, but then she turned around and started talking as if she was saying that for the fifth day in a row, it was raining. You wondered why she wasn't excited about magic, but you weren't allowed to ask about that today. So you would ask tomorrow. For now, you just listened.  
"The lights are special things which I can easily turn on and off, when I leave the mansion I make sure to give them enough magic for however long I'll be gone and a bit more just in case I get delayed, like today. That's all you're getting for now. The dinner hall is right here, which means that I need to ask you a favor. Don't talk. If someone asks a question, I'll try to answer it, and if you must say something, keep it short, alright?"  
"But... why?"  
"While that is a question, I'll let this one pass, just..." Lena glanced over her shoulder before staring at the ground. "Please just do me this favor okay? I can't explain it right now, just trust me when I say it's important."  
You looked at her, and for the first time she seemed uncertain. "I'll do it, but only if you'll explain it later."  
Lena seemed to regain her confidence. "Alright then, it's time for dinner."  
She opened the doors, and you followed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having some trouble balancing the 'webby asks all the questions' thing with the 'don't give all answers to all questions in a long monologue' rule of writing, hopefully it's working well enough. Any tips for my writing are appreciated.
> 
> Edit: This work has been on hold for a bit longer than I'd like but it will have to stay on hold still, the world keeps expanding with more characters and more backstory and at this point Violet has now been introduced and since she's part of team magic she's gonna be important in a story with lots of magic. The issue with that is that so far we don't have much to go on for Violet's personality, so until the new episodes I can't do much. Her addition also means this specific chapter will have to change.


End file.
